The Bharatiya Janata Party’s unexpected announcement of a third candidate for the June 18 Rajya Sabha elections in Madhya Pradesh has sparked fears of poaching within the Congress. The Opposition party is now reportedly considering relocating its MLAs to another state until polling.
A Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting was held at the residence of Leader of Opposition Umang Singhar on Monday night to discuss measures aimed at keeping the party’s MLAs together amid concerns over potential cross-voting. Around 60 legislators attended the meeting, which followed a suggestion from the Congress central leadership.
"The opinion of the legislators was sought after consultations with the party's central leadership. A final decision on the destination, possibly Bengaluru in Karnataka, is expected shortly," a close aide of Singhar told PTI. If approved, the MLAs could be moved as early as Tuesday.
One of its MLAs did not attend the CLP meeting as he was out in Delhi while veteran leader Kamal Nath attended virtually,
The elections on June 18 will fill three Rajya Sabha seats from Madhya Pradesh. Each candidate requires 58 first-preference votes for victory.
In the 230-member Assembly, Congress has 64 MLAs, though one is ineligible to vote following a Supreme Court order. The party also faces uncertainty over Sagar MLA Nirmala Sapre, who has been absent from CLP meetings and was recently seen sharing platforms with BJP leaders.
The BJP, with 164 MLAs, is assured of winning two seats and has fielded Tarun Chugh and Rajneesh Agrawal. For the third seat, the party has nominated Mahesh Kewat, chairman of the Madhya Pradesh Fishermen Welfare Board. However, even with the support of Sapre and BAP MLA Kamlesh Dodiyar, the BJP may need eight additional votes to secure this seat.
Kewat’s surprise entry has intensified the contest for the third seat. Congress has nominated former MP Meenakshi Natarajan and remains confident of retaining sufficient support to secure her election.
